By Kylee Baumle

I know we’ve just come out on the other side of Thanksgiving and we may be feeling a bit remorseful about eating a little too much. And, maybe, some of us plunked down a few too many dollars on Black Friday. So it isn’t as if you need any more bad news, but since we’re on a roll, let’s just get it over with.

The growing season has pretty much come to a halt for the year, especially when it comes to edibles. Oh, there might be some parsley or spinach still looking good, but for the most part, if we haven’t canned it, frozen it, pickled it, dried it, or otherwise stored it, we’re going to have to find another way to get fresh fruits and veggies if we want them.

By Jim Langham

She was a little while getting here, but on Jan. 14, 2010, a bubbly little girl was born to Jason and Cindi. I had always heard about grandchild moments, but from personal experience, I was going to be able to experience those moments on my own.

Recently, at age 22 months, our granddaughter has begun to talk effectively, in her own language and in her own way, but with communicative authority that really wins the hearts of her grandparents, Papa (that’s me) and either Moo Moo or Gamma (that’s Joyce).

This past weekend, I was busy part of the day while other family members enjoyed and entertained her. Late in the afternoon I was able to join up with the rest of the family.

By Nancy Whitaker

THE FRENCH IN FRENCH TOAST

Have you ever wondered why so many of the words we use have an unrelated word in front of it? I am speaking of words like French toast, French fries, French manicure, French windows, French cuffs, French onion soup and French bangs.

Then we have terms such as swiss steak, swiss chocolate, swiss cheese, German measles, Dutch treat, Belgian waffles, Swedish meatballs, Chinese checkers and Chinese jump rope.

By Jim Langham

As I look back and reflect on past Thanksgivings, it really strikes me that none of those reflections that I cherish the most had anything to do with money or wealth.

So often, when we are asked to produce reasons why we are thankful, it is easy to respond with answers such as, “food, shelter, warmth, cars” and other items that have price tags on them. While we are certainly encouraged to thank God for the everyday “care things” that he provides, the real special gifts moments are not ornaments.

These days, I think of the Thanksgiving we spent with my Grandma Langham in Woodburn, when Aunt Alice played the old pump organ and we sang such songs as, “Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken,” “Now Thank We All Our God,” and “Come, Ye Thankful People Come.”

As the deadline for our book looms near, my co-writer and I are working to get all the photographs we need to illustrate the marriage of houseplants and design.

Just as I traveled to Austin in July to spend a week with Jenny, she was here in Ohio a couple of weeks ago and we visited local places to gather what we needed for our book projects.

It always takes me by surprise when I’m just walking along, minding my own business and a distant memory stops me in my tracks. We were meandering through the aisles at a greenhouse, trying to decide which plants we wanted for the book and there it was – a prayer plant. Known as Maranta leuconeura botanically, this little plant is one of those quirky wonders of nature that seems to have a personality beyond its cosmetic beauty.

By Nancy Whitaker

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

“Happy Birthday to You; Happy Birthday to you; Happy Birthday dear......; Happy Birthday to You.”

How many times have you sung this song either at a birthday party, school, work, or a social gathering? We always feel happy to have this song sung to us because it signifies we have marked another birthday.

I know this song has been around for many years as I have had it sung to me for ...... (not telling) years. I was wondering, as I wonder about many things, where did the song, “Happy Birthday” originate?

By Nancy Whitaker

MAKING SENSE (CENTS) OF IT

Did you know that even though English is the most widely spoken language that it is crazy and some of the phrases used in it just do not make any sense.

In fact, some of the words and their meanings make the best writer or orator wonder the why and how’s of certain words.

In what other language do people drive in a parkway and park in a driveway?

When I walk through the garden, the plants make me happy by virtue of their beauty. Their flowers can be fabulous, but it may be the way each plant plays off the others with foliage in shades of green, blue, white, red, yellow or pink. The textures of the leaves – spiky, rounded, ferny, lobulated, scalloped, shiny, fuzzy – also provide interest, especially when combined with the various architectural forms of trees, shrubs, and plants.

My garden isn’t a designer’s dream by any means. Much of what grows next to its neighbor got there by accident. Rarely do I visit a garden center with a specific purchase plan for the plants I buy. I’ll walk through, something grabs my attention, I buy it, and then I figure out where I’m going to put it when I get it home. I’m a plant collector.

While I aspire to assemble what grows in our gardens in an aesthetically pleasing way, that talent doesn’t come naturally to me. But now and then, a moment of brilliance strikes and the result works. Many people hire someone to design their gardens to achieve a desired effect, but for me, that’s just one of the aspects of gardening that I enjoy – playing with the plants, moving them around until I’m happy with how things look. My garden is one big learning laboratory where I perform all kinds of experiments.

By Kylee Baumle

When the growing season has come to a close, there are plenty of related activities to keep me connected to the garden. By association, I’ve become much more interested in butterflies and other insects, birds, worms, and anything else that affects or is affected by what we grow on our property.

The monarchs and hummingbirds have fled. The robins are loading up on the juicy red berries on our Washington hawthorn trees. Wooly worms are inching along as they seek the perfect spot for their winter hibernation location.

By Jim Langham

A couple of weeks ago I was sitting in an area eatery consuming a sandwich and sipping on a cup of coffee. Suddenly it dawned on me, “the look game,” the waitress glancing my way to see if I was ready for more coffee, or my glance her way when I was desiring some service.

Amazing, isn’t it, how a one second glance across a busy restaurant can bring a quick-footed waitress with a fresh pot of coffee just because I gave a certain glance.

And there are other restaurant looks that speak many words. Such as the:

“When is our food coming out” look,